FIIs' plea on new rules rejected

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Friday rejected the demand of foreign institutional investors (FIIs) for extending the deadline to comply with new rules that require funds to have a minimum of 20 investors. HT reports.

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Friday rejected the demand of foreign institutional investors (FIIs) for extending the deadline to comply with new rules that require funds to have a minimum of 20 investors.

C.B. Bhave, chairman, Sebi said FIIs will have to register afresh under the new structure, and the FIIs and each of their sub-accounts must have not less than 20 investors — except for a few entities like pension funds.

"They have to comply with October 1 deadline," Bhave told reporters on Friday.

The norms also require that no single investor should account for 49 per cent of the fund raised for investment. Concerns have been raised that a few high-networth individuals have been playing the stock market using the FII route.

Bhave however did not seem concerned on FII inflow driving the stock markets in the recent past, but added that the regulator is keeping a close watch.

"As of now we are not concerned with the trail of money into the domestic market," Bhave said.